


Down the trail.

by ForeverAquarium



Category: Unwind Dystology - Neal Shusterman
Genre: Minor Original Character(s), Original Character(s), Other, Unwind
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-05
Updated: 2017-09-05
Packaged: 2018-12-24 10:06:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,474
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12010479
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ForeverAquarium/pseuds/ForeverAquarium
Summary: Anthony is tired.





	Down the trail.

**Author's Note:**

> A short story around my Main Unwind oc.  
> I may write more later?

Anthony shifted the bag on his shoulder and glanced around the area as he adjusted his glasses. Doing his best to appear like a student getting ready to go to school. His heart thumping loudly in his chest. It had been two weeks since he had run away from home, two weeks since he had run away to save his life.

* * *

 

 

Anthony flashed back to a month ago when his father had called him and told him what had happened. He had just gotten home from school and had settled down in his room, getting ready to start his homework before his phone buzzed at him with an agency. When he saw it was from his father he was confused. His father didn’t usually call at this time, the man couldn’t call until he was getting ready to leave from this station. But he wasn’t worried, maybe he was just calling to tell him that he wouldn’t be home for a while longer, or that his mother was coming by to pick up some of her things and for him to stay up stairs. So he wasn’t in a hurry when he answered the phone.

 

“Anthony! Anthony oh my god. You have to leave You, you need to run!” Anthony felt his heart jump in his stomach, the words his father spoke mixed with the tone made his anxiety spike up. His heart slowly making its way up into his throat.

 

“What…What do you mean dad? What’s going on? Why do I need to…? What’s happening?”

 

“It’s Elizabeth, it’s –it’s your mother! She, she forded my signature, she’s forged my signature on the unwinding papers, I just received the news!” Anthony felt his stomach drop, and he felt his knees give out underneath him. Yes, his mother had always hated him, but he had thought with his parents finally splitting he would be free of the woman, she wouldn’t be able to hurt him anymore. It seemed the woman had still found a final way to get to him and his dad.

 

“Can’t you-You get her in trouble for that! Can’t you! You get- get it repealed? You! You didn’t sign the papers! Isn’t it illegal for her to do that? You work with the government! You can get it repealed right?”  He could feel his chest going numb as he felt his panic slowly start to swallow him whole. Though he tried to calm himself down, it would be fine, it would be fine! His dad would get it repealed and he wouldn’t get ripped into little pieces and spread around the world. He would be fine. Though when he heard the sob from the other side of the phone he felt helpless. “…Dad?”

 

“…. I’m sorry Anthony. It would… It would take weeks, months, even years to get it repealed, I can’t… you need to run, run and hide, hide and survive Anthony.” Anthony shuddered and shook his head. He couldn’t believe this, he couldn’t believe it would take that long to get a simple case of forgery to take so long, though he knew it would take forever and with the way his dad was talking he didn’t have that sort of time. “I…I’m doing what I can right now, but you. You have to run Anthony, you have to run and hide and if I…. when I get this repealed, I’ll come find you alright? I’ll bring you home and I’ll make it up to you, son. I Promise.”

 

Anthony couldn’t believe him, he couldn’t believe anything his dad said but he nodded numbly. Listening to his father with deafening ears. He had two days, two days before he would risk being taken by the Juvenile officers. After he hung up his phone he stared at it for about two minutes before tossing it across his room with all his might. Rage raising up inside of him. He hoped the thing shattered. 

 

He turned and dumped his bag, shoving his homework onto the side of his bed. Before he set to work. He was shaking, rage curling up inside of him. He wanted to hurt that woman, like how she would in the past, like how she was trying to get him hurt like this. He wanted to hurt his father, by letting his mom hurt him like she had, for not noticing what she had done until she had already done her damage, for letting her doings slip under his nose like this for so long. For Fourteen years he had suffered under that woman’s hands underneath his dad’s nose, and just when he thought his father had been able to see and save him he let him down again. He knew his dad loved him, but the man had always been weak to his mother and had let his love for that woman blind him for years.

 

He grabbed his small bank and quickly pulled the top off dumping the money out of it, and counted the money out. Thirty-two dollars and sixty-two cents. Not a lot but it would have to do. Anthony ran his hands through his hair and took a few steps back. He needed to calm down, but he was so mad, he was beyond mad, he was infuriated. But it wouldn’t help him run away. He scooped up the money and folded it neatly into the front pocket of his backpack. After that He licked his lips and headed out of his room, heading straight into his father’s bedroom.

 

The room was bare spare for a few pictures, hung up around the room. Most of them were pictures of Anthony throughout the age. The rest were pictures of his their family, and on the dresser right next to a picture of Anthony when he was small was a picture of A small child maybe around the age of five or six? Dad said that it was his older brother, he knew that the boy died while his dad was off at war with some place, wasn’t it Greenland? any way, he was certain if his brother had still been around he wouldn’t have been shipped off. Dad had spoken about how much his mother seemingly loved the boy. Maybe if Basil had stayed alive, he wouldn’t have had to deal with the beast that his mother had been to him. He would like to think she wouldn’t have. 

 

He shook his head and got down onto his knees scanning underneath his father's bed until he saw what he was looking for and squirmed his way towards it until he managed to hook his fingers around the handle and moved back out. After taking a moment to adjust his glasses once more he opened the case staring down at the small pistol. Carefully he picked it up, never once pointing it at his face, just in case it was loaded. It was heavier than he believed it would be. But it was fine. He could figure out how to use it and if he needed to he could probably sell it for a pretty penny. Anthony was quick to put the gun back in the box and locked it back up. Was there anything else he could grab from in here? He didn’t think there was, so quickly he grabbed the case and headed back to his room, shoving it inside of the backpack. What else? What else would he need? He cursed and began to pace. He had money, protection. Should he cut his hair? He wondered, running his hands through his hair. He could do that. Though…. He should wait until he was far enough away to do that, he didn’t need anyone in town recognizing him, and now he was regretting getting his dad to agree to let him get that chain link tattoo around his ankle. Another way to identify him, but he wasn’t the only red head with a tattoo like that around his ankle, right? He couldn’t be. It would be fine. So… he needed to grab the scissors, food, of course, and… his eyes widen and he turned his head to his closet. Of course! Why hadn’t he thought about it earlier!

 

Anthony practically ran to his closet throwing open the door, staring up at the shoe box on the top shelf. Not for the first time, Anthony cursed being so short and grabbed the foot stool he had kept folded next to the door and stepped on it, grabbing the box and heading back to the bed. He tore the lid off the top and sighed in relief. His first aid kit. Thank god. It wasn’t full, not anymore, but thankfully, he still had some bandages, he shook the bottle and nodded to himself. It sounded like at least half the pills where still in the bottle. That was good. He had a feeling he was going to need those.

 

Anthony shoved the bandages and pills into his bag and stared at it all. He wasn’t going to let that woman get the best of him. He wasn’t going to let her get him killed. He was going to live, and if he met his dad after this, he hoped that he would still be able to think of him as his dad.

 

 

* * *

 

 

That had been three weeks ago, Anthony had done his best to keep himself clean, however, it was hard when you have to pass through forests and have to try to stay out of clear sight. He had cut his hair, four days after leaving. At the moment his hair looked like he had had a bad run-in with a pair of lawn clippers, his cheeks were dirty and he was starting to become thinner but, he couldn’t afford to stop. He needed to keep running until he was safe. What was safety? He didn’t know, but he hoped he would find it soon.

 

He was doing his best to look like a normal student or at least look like he knew what he was doing. He kept his eyes up and his back straight, smiling and doing his best to do anything but act like a unwind on the run. So far he had been lucky, going through cities where it’s normal to see children and adults who were worse off than him.But he was currently going around a small town, doing his best to act like a country kid that’s just out for a walk, and not an unwind. Small towns were dangerous.

 

Everyone knew everyone, and a stranger was usually met with caution. He couldn’t afford to get caught after traveling and working so hard on surviving. He hadn’t had to sell or use his dad’s gun, thankfully, though he wasn’t certain if it would stay that way. His money was running low and the food he had brought with him was very slim. He was down to three cans of spam, half a box of granola bars, and two bottles of water. It wasn’t a lot, but it was just enough, if he rationed it, to last him at least two days, three tops.

 

When the sun began to shine at its brightest, Anthony took shelter beneath a tree. Sitting down and catching his breath, he was tired, he realized. He was very, very tired. He wanted to rest, but he wasn’t safe here, he needed to keep walking a little bit longer, and then, then, he would get some rest.

 

He had almost dozed off when he heard what sounded like a truck and he froze, grabbing his back and pulled it closer to himself, as he tried to make himself smaller than he already was. His eyes wide as he saw the truck speed by, only to stop and slowly start to back up. His heart jumped into his throat and he began to slowly crawl further into the trees. His eyes never leaving the truck. He saw the doors open and an older man with bright blue jeans step out on the side he was facing. His heart slamming loudly against his chest as he continued to try to back up.

 

“Now… cerm on out of there kid. I can sees yah. There’s no use hidin.” Anthony kept his mouth shut and continued to crawl backwards, moving carefully as he could. “Come on now! Don’t make an old man cerm and getcha!” He hollered, waiting for a few moments before sighing. “god derm kids always gotta be difficult don’tcha?” The old man muttered before starting to step into the bush.

 

Anthony stopped moving and with shaking hands unzipped the bag and opened the clips on each side of the gun case and quickly grabbed the gun and hurringly stood up on his feet. “D-Don’t come any closer! Just! Just leave me alone! I have a gun! And I – I know how to use it! “

 

“Oh pish posh boy. If I were scared of yah I wouldn’t have gotten my boy back there to stop the god  dam car and come back fer yah. Now why don’t yah just put that gun away and let old db help yah?”

 

“I I can help my self! Just! Just leave! Shoo! Get away from me!” He stated his heart up in his throat. “I-I’m not going back! I’m not going to let them unwind me! You hear me! Get back in that truck! And leave!” The old man paused and scratched his head before looking back at his truck.

 

“Whoo boy. I figured you was a unwind. Now listen kid, we ain’t gonna hurtcha. We want ta help yah. You looking for a safe house that will lead yah the graveyard?” Anthony’s hands shook as he looked at the man with confusion. Graveyard? Was the old man hitting at killing him? Because I so he wasn’t very good at hiding it. “Listen. We ain’t gonna hurt yah. How bout this? You can keep that fancy little gun of yours out while I and my boy take ya out to the safe house how bout dat. And if you decided you ain’t wanting to stay yous can leave?”

 

Anthony didn’t know what to do, He didn’t trust this man, not one bit, but the idea of a safe house, a place where he could sleep and possibly eat for a few days sounded nice. He licked his lips and nodded his lips. “Alright…”

 

“Good! Now let's get cha in the truck!” If this was how he got unwound he swore he would make everyone that got his brain cells hunt this old man down and kill him. He swore it. A part of him was thankful to be in the ac, and not be walking anymore. It was nice, and within a few moments, Anthony was fast asleep.


End file.
